News

'Nominal sum' for Roches

DEBENHAMS will pay “a nominal sum” for Roches Stores, with little recognition of the goodwill associated with more than 100 years of trading. The family-owned company has been losing money for years, write Brian Carey and Joe Brennan.

“This is a property deal,” said one source close to the sale, which has been under way for almost a year.

Both sides are expected to sign off on an agreement this week. Management at Roches is set to meet negotiators from Mandate, the trade union that represents almost all of the company’s 2,000 staff, on Thursday morning.

“We will be looking for the same terms and conditions of employment and protection applying to workers at Roches to be transferred in a change in ownership,” said Linda Tanham, Mandate’s national official. “We will also be expecting a lump-sum payment in recognition of the loyalty of staff, all canteens to be maintained and